Fahd Jassem al-Freij

Fahd Jassem al-Freij (born 1 January 1950) was Chief-of-Staff of the Syrian Army from 2011 to 2012 and Deputy Prime Minister, Deputy Commander-in-Chief, and Minister of Defense of Syria from 2012.

Biography
Fahd Jassem al-Freij was born in the city of Hama, Syria on 1 January 1950. He was raised believing in Sunni Islam, and he joined the Syrian Arab Army in 1968. In 1971 he graduated from the Homs Military Academy as a Lieutenant in the armored corps. During the Syrian Civil War, he commanded the Syrian special forces in Daraa, Idlib, and Hama before being appointed as the Chief-of-Staff of the Syrian Army in 2011. Eventually, President Bashar al-Assad clamped down on the power of his ministers and appointed his inner circle to their posts. However, the death of Dawoud Rajha on 18 July 2012 led to al-Freij being made the Minister of Defense in addition to the posts of Deputy Commander-in-Chief and Deputy Prime Minister.